The present invention relates to article hangers and more particularly to a unique adjustable clip for converting a conventional garment hanger into a suit hanger.
A wide variety of article or garment hangers have been developed for the transport and/or display of tops such as blouses and shirts, outerwear such as coats and slacks and skirts. Different hangers are used for pants, slacks and skirts than for tops or outerwear. If garments such as blouses and slacks are sold as coordinated outfits or in color combinations, it is desirable to display the articles together. Heretofore, various arrangements have been provided to accomplish such. For example, a coat, blouse or shirt hanger may include an elongated rod extending between the ends of the hanger arms. Clothespin type clamps are on the horizontally extending rod. The clamps may be used to suspend a skirt or a pair of slacks from the hanger. With this approach, versatility is provided. However, the added expense of the horizontally extending rod and clamps is unnecessary if the hanger is used only for display of blouses, shirts or coats.
Proposals have been made to provide a detachable pants bar for a garment hanger to overcome the aforementioned problem. An example of one such hanger may be found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,046,293 entitled DETACHABLE BAR FOR GARMENT HANGER and issued on Sept. 6, 1977 to Garrison. If the hanger is to be used to support a pair of pants or slacks and a coat, a pants bar may be attached in a snap fit fashion to the garment hanger.
With pants, slacks and skirts, clamps may be preferred for display, transport or support. Examples of pant or skirt hangers may be found in U.S. Pat. No. 3,767,092 entitled GARMENT CLAMPING HANGER WITH SLIDABLE LOCKING CLIP and issued on Oct. 23, 1973 to Batts et al; U.S. Pat. No. 4,446,996 entitled MEANS OF SECURING GARMENT CLAMPS TO HANGERS and issued on May 8, 1984 to Garrison; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,638,930 entitled HANGER LEG MOUNTING STRUCTURE FOR A SUPPORT ROD and issued on Jan. 27, 1987 to Blanchard.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,446,996 discloses a garment hanger including a pair of outwardly extending arms which are cut from steel rod or steel wire. Clamps are supported on the rod-like arms. The clamps define circular channels which may be pressed onto the rod. U.S. Pat. No. 4,638,930 discloses a pant or skirt hanger which includes a plastic body having depending legs. An elongated wire or metal rod is supported by the depending legs. A pair of generally H-shaped clamps are adjustably positioned on the elongated rod. The clamps include a pair of wings or members which are biased into a closed or clamping position by a spring.
Proposals have been made for ganging together a hanger such as that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,638,930 with a tops or upper garment hanger. U.S. Pat. No. 4,653,678 entitled GANGING HOOK FOR GARMENT HANGERS and issued on Mar. 31, 1987 to Blanchard et al discloses a molded plastic hanger which includes a central neck portion, outwardly extending arms and a centrally positioned support hook. The hanger also defines a hook anchor positioned below and in vertical alignment with the hanger support hook. The hook anchor is dimensioned to receive a support hook of another hanger such as a pant/skirt hanger. In this fashion, the hangers may be ganged together and coordinated outfits may be displayed or transported together.
With presently known arrangements, in order to increase the versatility of a tops, upper garment or outerwear hanger, special provision must be made in the hanger construction to accept or gang together another hanger, to add a pants bar or to add support structure for clamps. A need exists for a device which will convert a conventional upper garment hanger into a suit hanger which does not require modification of the basic garment hanger but which provides increased versatility, reduced assembly difficulty and costs.